Namasté for life: this is why children should do yoga

By
RITUALS

Mon Nov 19 2018

3 min read

Competition, perfectionism, pressure, distraction: modern children face so much in their everyday lives. Some schools are countering these childhood challenges by introducing yoga into their curriculums. We love yoga for the way it completely engages the mind, body and spirit. Life’s worries and distractions are left at the door while we focus on ourselves and our well-being, at least for a while. And so it is with children. As more kids are displaying symptoms of anxiety and stress, parents, caregivers and teachers are intent on doing something positive for our younger generation.

Yoga in the classroom

Enlightened school administrators are realizing that they need to do more with less, and yoga in schools ticks so many boxes: it is easy for children to learn; it’s low cost; and it engages the minds, bodies and spirits of students in a totally natural way.

In the same way that gym, art and math are regular subjects in the classroom, we think that yoga would fit beautifully into the weekly curriculum, and the benefits are vast. For this reason, at Rituals, we’re committed to teaching two million schoolchildren yoga, meditation and mindfulness by 2023. Stay tuned…

A mindful toolkit

Yoga is a tool for life that can have such a positive impact on young people. It encourages self-esteem and body awareness, is not competitive, improves concentration and brings about a sense of calm. And a regular practice means it becomes a natural part of children’s lives, setting up coping mechanisms and good physical habits for life.

Yoga can also help kids to get to know themselves, to be self-reflective, and to ultimately become more compassionate, thoughtful and happy people. Speaking of happiness, our new The Ritual of Holi collection celebrates the power of self-acceptance and the power of being real instead of perfect.

Yoga helps us to…

manage stress through breathing, awareness, meditation and movement

develop body awareness

build concentration

use our bodies in a healthy way

increase our confidence and positive self-image

put away our electronic devices (for a while)...

History will judge us by the difference we make in the everyday lives of children